I like the name Gustav

Jips and I like going to the gulf coast during labor day weekend because there are fewer people on the beach, and this labor day the combined forces of Gustav and the shitty economy made for even fewer people on the beach.

Yes, you read that correctly, with the approaching hurricane Gustav, I traveled south to go to the beach. It was wonderful. The beach is the most healing place for me: mentally, physically, emotionally. Coming home I feel refreshed and peaceful. If I was doing it again, I would not stay during the 24 hours before the hurricane hit land. 2 days before the hurricane was ideal beach weather:

And then on Sunday, August 31st, the winds picked up and the surf reminded me of the Atlantic rather than the gulf.
We drove back Sunday night after seeing Bobby Jindal on CNN talk about how once the tropical storm winds started it wouldn't be safe to drive. We drove north with lots of other evacuees and since we were just leaving vacation early rather than leaving our homes, the exodus felt fun like going to a football game.

loldogs

Just a quick post before I head to work.
I just found the answer to lolcats: loldogs!



see more dog pictures

Mosaic

I found this Mosaic Idea on Adventures of a Bad Ass.
Click over there for the instructions.
Here are my answers:

1. What is your first name? Fermi
2. What is your favorite food? Blueberries
3. What high school did you go to? LHS
4. What is your favorite color? Purple
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Jack Black
6. Favorite drink? Diet Sunkist
7. Dream vacation? beach
8. Favorite dessert? cake
9. What you want to be when you grow up? rich
10. What do you love most in life? dogs
11. One Word to describe you. silly
12. Your flickr name. (I don't have one, but it would be The Fermi Level)

Thank you to the following Flickr people:
1. Baby Buffalo at Fermi Lab, 2. two blueberries, 3. Bristol LHS VOD93K Devon General, 4. what's with the purple bags????, 5. Jack Black as "Nacho Libre", 6. Beverages, 7. Dracula's Castle Panama City Beach, FL, 8. Trial Buttercream Wedding Cake - Mini, 9. triangle to rich, 10. Three Dog Road Trip, 11. Silly Saturday Centerfold, 12. Fig34 (0.1 fermi)

Do I have chocolate on my face?

Ahh, Peaches, I have been tickled by your past two posts. I love the one about the parent calling, and our grandmothers being computers. You also mention the fact that I have been trying to NOT mention... That you and I are the only posters as of 4-20 day. I've only been avoiding the subject because of who? Who else -- my boss.

So my boss is quite possibly THE WORST TEACHER EVER. I have had the joy of taking 2 out of 2 of his graduate level classes. They are bad. He gets up in front of us, lectures, observes our unhappy faces, and stops the lecture to say to us:

"Why don't you love [enter class name here]!?! You should be thrilled to learn about this! This class is better than anything else in your life! What is wrong with you!"

Now, we are accosted as the collective "you," which is better than being singled out. But still, stopping the lecture to tell us to be excited about your lecture topic is NOT the way to motivate students. It only draws attention to the fact that you are a sucky teacher.

That is why I didn't want to draw attention to the fact that no one was blogging. Instead I tried to just post alot myself to make blogging seem fun. heh. well, in other news...

Today Zazu and I had this conversation.
Setting: My office, Zazu reading a science book.
Props: the office should be filled with diet soda bottles and cans, half of them full of soda, half of them consumed. Estimate number of 2 liter bottles: 8, Estimate number of cans: 18.
Enter Stage Left: Fermi
Zazu turns to look at Fermi and speaks (slowly): Do you have any chocolate?
Fermi (surprised): Do I have chocolate on my face?
Zazu (seems to think Fermi did not understand the question): No, Do you have any chocolate?
Fermi (again, surprised): Do I have chocolate on my face?
Zazu: No. I just want to know if you have any.
Fermi: Oh. No, I don't have any. Why?
Zazu: Well, sometimes when I am reading--not that I'm not interested in what I am reading-- but I just get tired. So I need some chocolate.
Fermi: Why don't you just have a soda?
Zazu (looking around): Well, I could... but I don't like to drink soda.
Fermi: Why not?
Zazu: Because its unhealthy... and I have bad teeth. Its not good for my teeth.
Fermi: Have some coffee.
Zazu: I don't like coffee.
Fermi: So you need chocolate.
Zazu: Right.
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photo from a free photo site. By Hbregazzi.

when the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie....

i thought my life was going to settle down, but it's absolutely not
going to at all until the semester is over...which i guess is
how graduate school is supposed to be!

my fiance and i took our engagement pictures a few weeks
ago, and it was actually quite fun! i had always thought
engagement pictures were cheesy (which they definitely are)
and a waste of money, but once it came time for us to
decide i realized i actually wanted to take some. just the idea
to have all of these pictures of us young and in love...and even
just the memory of that day taking pictures. it just seemed
like a waste not to do it! plus i think it's fun that we'll have these goofy pictures of us making out all over downtown, and how scarring it will be for our kids to look at the album....

school is as busy as ever with papers and readings, but it's getting to the point where i know i'm in the right field. i'm getting excited about my research- and at least for me, that means i'm going to do a much better job!

also, very exciting news- we found a house today!!! we've been living in this TINY one-bedroom house...literally it's about 300 square feet (which is pretty much just one square that will fit 1 1/2 couches, a bed, a little desk, and pretty much only 4 people at a time). and our new place is this really funky old house with a sunken den- 2 bedrooms and a study!! i'm so excited....definitely the highlight of my week.

that's all the time for today- and now it's time for bed! (i'm old and not much fun anymore, i enjoy my sleep)